Josephina Schäfer
Excursion into the Bush
We often got to spend our weekends with the Bishop. Not only were we invited to eat with him every Sunday, but we were also fortunate enough to accompany him on Saturdays in his work in the bush.
These Saturdays were always little adventures. We set off very early in the morning. We were picked up punctually by our chauffeur and set off in off-road vehicles and pickups. Because these roads are impassable for a normal car. The roads, you can hardly call them roads, were muddy dirt tracks with rickety bridges, surrounded by palm trees, trees, a variety of plants, and small rivers.
We often drove for several hours until we reached our destination. Not infrequently, the Bishop accepted an invitation to eat along the way. We were always warmly welcomed and received a delicious breakfast, prepared with obvious care. However, unlike in Germany, here you eat warm food for breakfast. So, there was rice, chicken, plantain, and fish as early as 9 a.m.
After a little refreshment, we continued. Deeper and deeper into the bush. Passing by isolated houses and small villages.
Village life in the bush was another world for us. The small houses were mostly just rickety mud huts. There is no running water there and often no electricity. This life was again a great contrast to our city life in Ébolowa and thus an even greater contrast to our life in Germany.
Arriving at our destination, the Bishop is received with great jubilation. The villagers wear their finest clothes and await him at the village entrance with flowers and music. After the festive reception, Bishop Philippe Alain Mbarga always holds a church service. Everything is beautifully prepared for this as well.
We sit in an idyllic landscape under self-made roofs of palm leaves. During the service, there is always a cheerful, lively atmosphere. There is singing and dancing.
Once we even had the opportunity to be at a wedding and communion. After church, we always followed another invitation to eat in the village. There, too, a feast was laid out.
After such a long and exhausting, but equally beautiful day, we usually came home late in the evening and fell straight into bed from exhaustion.